Endangered sea turtle nest discovered at Galveston Island State Park for the first time in a decade – Houston Public Media

A nest of endangered sea turtle eggs was discovered on the beachside of Galveston Island State Park final week — the first nest found at the park in over a decade.

The nest contained 107 eggs laid by a Kemp's Ridley sea turtle, which is without doubt one of the most endangered sea turtle species on the earth.

This was the first nest found at Galveston Island State Park since 2012, in response to Christopher Marshall, a professor of Marine Biology at Texas A&M and director for the Gulf Heart for Sea Turtle Analysis.

As soon as the nest was discovered, it was delivered to an incubation facility at Padre Island Nationwide Seashore, Marshall said.

“Every egg issues,” Marshall said. "A lot of nesting habitat for the Kemp's Ridley has been lost to storms, excessive tide and predation, which is why you will need to transport these nests to an atmosphere where they have the best probability for survival into adulthood."

The species was virtually lost within the Eighties until intensive conservation efforts had been applied on nesting seashores and thru fisheries management, in response to NOAA Fisheries. Bycatch — the intentional seize of non-target species whereas fishing — continues to be the biggest risk facing Kemp's Ridley sea turtles.

Marshall mentioned the typical nesting season for the Kemp's Ridley sea turtle runs between April 1 and July 15. He urged anyone who finds a nest to stay at least 60 toes away and to name the Sea Turtle hotline at 1-866-TURTLE-5.

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